Contact Chai
Download on the App Store

Contact Chai episodes

  • Shabbat Replay: When It’s Dark, Look Up

    This week, we hear from Rabbi Deena about Daylight Savings Time and our relationship with darkness. 
     
    To watch  our full service from Friday,  November 17th, click here. Check out upcoming Shabbat services and programs here.

    Learn more about Mishkan Chicago. Follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook.

    Be sure to like and subscribe to our podcast for updates on new episodes! And please leave a review. We want to hear from you.

    Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, written by Kalman Strauss.

    16 min
  • Shabbat Replay: Eating Disorders and a Call for Community Support

    This week, we hear from Sarah Bateman, a licensed clinical social worker, a mental health advocate and the Jewish Community Liaison at The Renfrew Center for Eating Disorders. 
     
    To watch  our full service from Friday,  October 29th, click here. Check out upcoming Shabbat services and programs here.

    Learn more about Mishkan Chicago. Follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook.

    Be sure to like and subscribe to our podcast for updates on new episodes! And please leave a review. We want to hear from you.

    Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, written by Kalman Strauss.

    13 min
  • Shabbat Replay: Finding Meaning in the Unexplained

    This week, we hear the live recording of Rabbi Steven Philp's drash from Friday, October 22nd. Tune in for Rabbi Steven's sermon about ghosts, the unexplained, balancing our rational minds and finding value in what we cannot understand.

    To watch  our full service from Friday,  October 22nd, click here. Check out upcoming Shabbat services and programs here.

    Learn more about Mishkan Chicago. Follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook.

    Be sure to like and subscribe to our podcast for updates on new episodes! And please leave a review. We want to hear from you.

    Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, written by Kalman Strauss.

    16 min
  • The High Holidays: Envisioning A Year of Justice with R'Stephanie Ruskay

    This episode concludes a three-part series diving into the High Holidays. In this episode, Rabbi Deena Cowans is in conversation with her friend and mentor, Rabbi Stephanie Ruskay.  Rabbi Ruskay has made her career in the Jewish social justice sector, serving in leadership positions at the American Jewish World Service, Auburn Theological Seminary, and AVODAH Jewish Service Corps, just to name a few. She is an alumna of the Jewish Theological Seminary’s and Columbia University’s Joint Program, The Davidson School of Education and JTS The Rabbinical School. She currently serves as the Associate Dean of The Rabbinical School of JTS and the Executive Director of the Hendel Center for Ethics and Justice, where she directs field education and entrepreneurial endeavors that raise the scope, skills and profile of justice work and community organizing for contemporary rabbis. 


    Join Mishkan Chicago for the High Holidays in-person or via livestream! You can find a smorgasbord of a la carte options at this link: https://www.mishkanchicago.org/high-holy-fest/

    As always, you can find out more about Mishkan at MishkanChicago.org or by following us on social media @mishkanchicago. 

    28 min
  • The High Holidays: Practicing Community with Casper ter Kuile

    We continue our three-part series diving into the High Holidays. In this episode, Rabbi Steven Philp, the newest addition to our rabbinic team, is in conversation with his friend and sought-after writer, speaker and deep thinker, Casper ter Kuile. Casper is the author of The Power of Ritual, the co-founder of Sacred Design Lab and the co-creator of podcasts Harry Potter and the Sacred Text and The Real Question. He is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School and Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and his work has been featured in the New York Times, Vice, NPR, Washington Post, on the Today Show, and on and on. Casper speaks and writes on community trends, ritual, and emerging spirituality.

    In this conversation, Rabbi Steven and Casper discuss the power of convening in person, and both the potential and pitfalls in digital community gathering in the 21st Century. As we look to the High Holidays, a time of communal atonement and reflection, we hope this conversation leaves you feeling inspired and curious about how to make your New Year experience as meaningful as possible, and start considering now who you might spend it with to make the most of that time.


    Join Mishkan Chicago for the High Holidays in-person or via livestream! You can find a smorgasbord of a la carte options at this link: https://www.mishkanchicago.org/high-holy-fest/

    As always, you can find out more about Mishkan at MishkanChicago.org or by following us on social media @mishkanchicago. 

    35 min
  • The High Holidays: Mining the Wreck with Jay Michaelson

    This episode begins a three-part series diving into the High Holidays. Rabbi Lizzi is joined by Jay Michaelson, a writer who works at the intersection of politics and spirituality, to discuss the power, potential and pitfalls in mining our shared tradition's liturgy, practices and themes. 

    Join Mishkan Chicago for the High Holidays in-person or via livestream! You can find a smorgasbord of a la carte options at this link: https://www.mishkanchicago.org/high-holy-fest/

    As always, you can find out more about Mishkan at MishkanChicago.org or by following us on social media @mishkanchicago. 


    43 min
  • Transforming Despair into Determination with Joe Grant & Anna Gaebler

    Tune into this Tisha B'Av-inspired bonus episode featuring Joe Grant and Anna Gaebler — two advocates and organizers working on economic justice in Chicago.

    Rabbi Lizzi joins Joe and Anna in conversation about our shared history of destruction and despair, as well as our shared history of hope, determination, the fight for justice and equity. If you're looking for a way to bring Tisha B'Av (the saddest day on the Jewish calendar commemorating the destruction of temples) into the 21st century, this episode is a perfect listen! You'll learn more about the themes of the holiday, as well as economic justice at Mishkan and beyond.

    To get involved with the Economic Justice Committee at Mishkan, please contact Joe Grant at [email protected]!

    27 min
  • Shabbat Replay: Finding the Words for Pride ft. Joshua Schwartz

    This week, we hear the live recording of Mishkanite Joshua Schwartz's drash from Friday, June 25th. Tune in for Josh's reflection on Torah in relation to Pride, Jewish identity, and finding a spiritual home.

    Tune into our full service from Friday, June 25th, click here. Check out upcoming Shabbat services and programs here.

    Learn more about Mishkan Chicago. Follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook.

    Be sure to like and subscribe to our podcast for updates on new episodes! And please leave a review. We want to hear from you.

    Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, written by Kalman Strauss.

    12 min
  • Shabbat Replay: Opal Lee & Miriam, Champions for Justice

    This week, we hear the live recording of Rabbi Deena's drash from Friday, June 18th. Tune in for her reflection on Torah in relation to Juneteenth.

    Tune into our full service from Friday, June 18th, click here. Check out upcoming Shabbat services and programs here.

    Learn more about Mishkan Chicago. Follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook.

    Be sure to like and subscribe to our podcast for updates on new episodes! And please leave a review. We want to hear from you.

    Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, written by Kalman Strauss.

    16 min
  • Shabbat Replay: Imagination Over Validation

    This week, we hear the live recording of Rabbi Lizzi's drash from Friday, June 11th. Tune in for her reflection on Torah in relation to Israel and Palestine

    Tune into our full service from Friday, June 11th, click here. Check out upcoming Shabbat services and programs here.

    Learn more about Mishkan Chicago. Follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook.

    Be sure to like and subscribe to our podcast for updates on new episodes! And please leave a review. We want to hear from you.

    Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, written by Kalman Strauss.

    23 min

About Contact Chai

From the publisher's feed

Contact Chai is Mishkan Chicago’s podcast feed, where you can hear our Shabbat sermons, Morning Minyans, interviews with Jewish thought leaders, and more.

More shows like Contact Chai

Pardes from Jerusalem by Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies

Pardes from Jerusalem

201 Listeners

The Daily by The New York Times

The Daily

111,863 Listeners

Haaretz Podcast by Haaretz

Haaretz Podcast

296 Listeners

The Times of Israel Daily Briefing by The Times of Israel

The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

1,066 Listeners

The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

The Ezra Klein Show

15,891 Listeners